Partnerships which assisted the sustainable development of the poor

(Part II and last of articles on 45 Years of OB Montessori’s Part in Helping Reconstruct Philippine Society)

Since 2000, the United Nations has advocated the harmonization of all its agencies like UNDP, WHO, UNICEF, UNESCO, FAO, ILO, UN Habitat, World Food Population, UNHCR (refugees), etc. Referred to as “Delivering As One,” it sought to prevent overlapping of efforts and funds. This took some time to operate, for each agency had gotten used to having individual budgets and tend to guard it jealously resisting any decrease. To stress its goal of developing the economic stability of developing countries, the UN declared the UN Millennium Development Goal (UNMDG 2000-2015) and the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD).

Paradoxically, it has been observed that development funds channeled through the UN or through bilateral agreements from country to country, usually given by US, Canada, Japan or Australia have instilled the “grant dependency” syndrome of governments. This is prevalent in the Philippines where education, culture, environment, health, etc. projects fail to sustain itself as soon as the grant is consumed. Fifty years ago, when Asian countries were impoverished by World War II, an American dollar was equivalent to P4, putting the Philippines as an economically sufficient country, compared to her neighbors. Eventually, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia caught up, while the Philippines tailed behind.  

’Walking the Talk’ for the UNMDG and DESD 2000-2O15

A favorite ploy of Filipino politicians is to make as many “pogi points” as he/she can. “Pogi” is a colloquial Filipino word meaning good-looking, handsome or beautiful (but failing to make good one’s promises.) Since we gained our independence more than half a century ago, the failure of most government leaders to “walk the talk” has failed 70 percent of the population to rise above the poverty level. Hungry, ignorant and miserably caught in natural disasters, our countrymen are very demoralized.

The last ten years since the UNMDG has been declared has been the busiest period for Operation Brotherhood Center in restructuring the education of Filipino children irregardless of social status, race or religion. As soon as UNESCO announced that the first ten years of EFA has succeeded in increased school enrollment of developing countries, but quality of education has remain sub-standard, the Operation Brotherhood Montessori Child and Community Foundation (OBMCCF) reached out to introduce the Montessori system to the public school of Pulung Bulu in Angeles Pampanga, right behind the OBMC branch school along MacArthur Highway. It took a good three years re-training the public school teachers to get used to the system and to use the Montessori apparata while exhibiting its superior quality to visiting public school teachers from the seven provinces of Region 3 including former Secretary of Education, Dr. Edilberto de Jesus. In the past 11 years, parents have been cueing to enroll their children in its preschool and complete elementary school even if they have to regularly contribute money to maintain the materials, hire a security guard and janitors. Its principal, Dr. Agnes Manabat is eager to let us inject the Montessori system into its SPED classes.

Friends of my late husband helped rebuild a lahar damaged school house within the campus, which became a bodega, into a two storey building with enough rooms to integrate the elementary school with the professional high school in the coming years. The latter will incorporate food service already practiced in our four OB Montessori Professional high schools since 1980. This could serve as a model to speed up the efforts of P-Noy’s government who believes that K-12 is only possible to achieve by 2016.

The sustainable partnership with DSWD

The World Economic Forum states, “Partnerships are viewed by some as the ideal way to bypass failed, corrupt or simply ineffective governments. Many participants are committed as what they perceive as proven capacity to innovate, provide alternative models, broaden decision making and complement public sector resource.” Since UNESCO Education Committee sought the help of the OBMCCF in the year 2000 UNMDG for result-based education for the public school, seven municipal mayors of the World Heritage site in Ifugao had their DSWD Day Care Centers converted to Pagsasarili Preschools in 2003. Ifugao DSWD director Joyce Niwanee has fully supported the project. Monthly tuition fees range from P250 to P300, earning the barangay P8,750 per session, none of which is shared with the teachers. As volunteer workers, each of the seven teachers get a DSWD salary of P3,500 whether she handles a single or double session.

By 2005, then Lipa mayor, Vilma Santos-Recto signed a MOA through the city DSWD director Peza to convert their Day Care Centers, accepting the funding package of re-training teachers and a van load of apparatus per center. By 2007, Lipa had 60 Pagsasarili teachers.

In 2008, when Mrs. Recto was elected provincial governor, the new Lipa Mayor Gozos, who replaced her added 37 more Pagsasarili preschools to Lipa. Gov. Recto continued converting Day Care Centers all over the province so by this year, 16 more Pagsasarili preschools were put up.

By now, a total of 113 Pagsasarili preschools exist all over the province, several of whom have graduated from Grade VI — an excellent subject for the graduate school research of La Salle and Lyceum Universities of Batangas.

Tuition fee of P100 monthly, multiplied by 30 kids per session (30 pupils x P100 = P3,000) goes to the teacher, plus Lipa DSWD honorarium of P4,500, plus barangay allowance (P1,500 to P3,000) could earn a double session teacher P12,000 monthly. Outside Lipa, the provincial Pagsasarili teacher earns P18,500 for a double session, which charges P250 per child, plus a barangay honorarium of P1,500 and DSWD honorarium P1,500. The formula of sustainability therefore is the harmonious relationship of the governor, mayor or congressman with DSWD.

The unsustainable partnership with DepEd

In 2007 our Education Committee commissioner was Dr. Vilma Labrador, then the DepEd Assistant Secretary. After succeeding to convince DepEd Secretary Jesli Lapus to have a pair of public preschool teachers train with the Montessori Pagsasarili system, 25 such preschools were established in Regions I, II, III, IVa and IVb (Mindoro, Marinduque, Masbate, Romblon and Palawan). Each of them had a complete set of Pagsasarili Montessori materials, specially designed furniture, three site monitoring and evaluation of teachers by our nine trainors.

For the first two years, our trainors rhapsodized how the students were achieving primary school skills in all subjects with the special apparata. Then suddenly without notifying us, most of these teachers were pulled up to grade school, and the precious materials were left behind (probably misplaced, damaged or lost).

What is most heart breaking is in spite of the formal agreement with DepEd Secretary Lapus and Asec. Labrador, no caution was exercised by providing items to these carefully selected teachers. The worst part is, without notice, when the teachers were given items and placed in the primary school, the principal did not allow them to bring along the materials. The wonderful lessons in Geography, History, Botany, Zoology, Math and Geometry as well as Practical Living would have made them acquire skills and knowledge far beyond the existing DepEd curriculum.

In Region I, two pairs of Pagsasarili teachers assigned to the Baua, La Union and Lingayen Central School of Pangasinan were given items and made to leave the well-equipped Pagsasarili classroom. Fortunately, the elementary schools of Enrile, Cagayan and Naguilian, Isabela where the two pairs of teachers were provided items of P15,000 monthly and allowed to continue handling the Pagsasarili preschools. No tuition fee is collected.

In Region III, the Pagsasarili preschool of Dinalupihan Bataan was abandoned, but the South Concepcion Preschool of Tarlac continues to operate with yearly increase in enrollment. Although the teachers have no items, the monthly tuition of P500 is divided among the three teachers with the consent of the parents.

‘The new partnerships’ according to the World Economic Forum article

According to the world forum article “New Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development,” Is one of existing international agreements, recognition that education development cannot take place in a piecemeal fashion, and awareness that scattered interventions will at best temporary solutions to micro-level problems. New partnerships involving the private sector must be grounded in the international community’s ongoing efforts, donor harmonization processes, sector-wide approaches..... to ensure synergies and avoid fragmentation and duplication of efforts.